In the legend of Şahmeran, which somehow managed to find a place for itself in the common mythologies of all societies that lived in Anatolia, there is a woman who is believed to be descended from all living snakes. Let’s take a closer look at what is the story of Şahmeran, which is rumored to be still alive.
Every society has a culture conveyed through their experiences and a mythology conveyed through their stories. Some of these stories, each of which is unique, may be similar due to the common experiences of societies. The legend of Shahmaran is one of the most well-known examples of this. Shahmaran common in Turkish, Iraqi, Iranian and other mythologies in Anatolia The story tells of a supernatural being.
In the legend of Şahmeran, there is a woman who is believed to be descended from all snakes and to rule all snakes. This woman who lives seven floors underground One day, after meeting a young man, he grants him infinite wisdom. It is even said that the character in this story, whose finale is a bit bloody, is still alive. Let’s take a closer look at the Shahmaran story and see its cultural impact.
For those who don’t know, what is Şahmeran?
Şahmaran, also known as Şahmaran; In Iraqi, Iranian, Turkish and Anatolian mythologies It is a mythological character told through similar stories, even if not the same. Its name is formed by combining the Persian words shah and maran, meaning snakes. In other words, Şahmeran is the king of snakes.
Although the Shah is a title generally used for men, according to the common point of all the stories Şahmeran is female, that is, female. Known to be smart and good, this character is in the form of snakes below and human above. It is believed that all snakes are descended from him and that he rules all snakes, and the Shahmaran never ages. He is also said to be immortal, but it is generally believed that after he died, his soul passed to his daughter and the story went on like this.
There are too many similarities: Is the Basilisk Medusa?
Of course, when we say that she was a snake, the first mythological character that comes to mind is Medusa. We can think that Sahmeran is actually Medusa. We can clearly say that this is unrelated, because although Medusa is a female monster with snake hair and turns anyone who sees it into stone, she is an ordinary mortal. Of course, it’s not to say that you haven’t been inspired.
The story that shows the real similarity with Şahmeran is the legend of the Hittites Illuyanka. In this legend, the war between a terrible snake-like creature and Teshub is told. Even if it looks similar, the creature in this legend is more evil than Şahmeran. Of course, considering that the Hittites were also an Anatolian civilization, we cannot ignore the link of inspiration.
Let’s come to the legend of Şahmeran: The mysterious garden seven floors underground
Once upon a time, there lived a poor young man named Cemşab in Tarsus. This young man was trying to take care of his family by working as a woodcutter. One day, they discovered a cave full of honey with their friends. His friends brought Cemşab down to this cave with a rope and started to extract the honey. His greedy friends cut the rope and left Cemşab in the cave in order not to share the honey with him.
The young man, who was wandering in the cave to see what I should do, discovered a hole through which light was leaking and He dug up this hole with his knife. When he passed through the hole, he found himself in a garden more beautiful than he had ever seen in his life. In one corner of this garden, there was Şahmeran sitting on his throne.
The duo stayed in this garden for many years. Şahmeran told Cemşab about the secrets of medical science that were not known until then. When the time passed, Cemşab wanted to go, saying that he missed his family. Şahmeran allowed the young man to return home on the condition that he not tell anyone about this place.
Sahmeran secret is revealed:
Cemşab returned to his family and kept his promise to Şahmeran for many years and did not tell anyone about him. One day, the sultan of the country fell ill. The vizier, who thought that the only cure for the disease was to eat the meat of Şahmeran, informed the country and checked everyone by putting them in the bath one by one.
When it was Cemşab’s turn, scales from Şahmeran were seen on his body. Cemşab, who could not stand the insistence, explained all that had happened. They immediately went to the well and took Şahmeran out. Seeing Cemşab, Şahmeran said to him; ‘Boil my head and let the sultan drink, the sultan will be saved, my body will be drunk by the vizier, he will die, boil my tail and drink it, so that you become a Lokman Physician’
Cemşab did all of these one by one. The sultan survived, the vizier died, and the sultan made Cemşab a vizier. From that day on, Cemşab used the unique medical knowledge he received from Şahmeran. Lokman became a Physician. They say that even today snakes do not know that their king is dead. If they find out one day, they will invade the world.
Or is it real: Is Sahmeran alive, where is he now?
If we go through the mythological story, yes, Şahmeran still lives in a cave in Tarsus district of Mersin today. Because even if he is physically dead He survived because his spirit was transferred. According to another rumor, he lives in Yılankale in Adana’s Ceyhan district.
Of course, Şahmeran is a fictional character, but he has an intense influence on the culture of the region. The legend that he lived In houses in regions such as Mersin, Adana, Mardin It is possible to encounter the figure of Shahmaran. Especially the Shahmaran figures made by the masters of Mardin are the most popular.
Lokman Hekim, born from the legend of Şahmeran:
According to the legends, the first person to meet Şahmeran is a young man named Belkıya. In different sources, the names Camşab and Cemşab are used. There are also stories where Lokman’s name is mentioned, but it is generally believed that the young man became Lokman Physician after receiving unique information about medical science from Şahmeran.
It is possible to encounter Lokman Hekim in many stories, especially in Islamic sources. As there are those who say that he is a prophet or a saint. It is said that he never lived. Lokman Hekim character, born from the story of Şahmeran, breaks his divine bond and transforms it into a mythological character.
Muhammed Esed mentions that Lokman Hekim is a fictional character like Hızır. According to a popular story, Lokman Hekim found the elixir of immortality. and put it in a bottle. However, because Allah did not approve of people being immortal, he sent Gabriel. Gabriel intervened while Lokman Hekim was crossing a bridge and the bottle fell and disappeared.
We also have a local TV series adapted from this legend: Şahmaran.
- Year: 2023
- Genre: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
- Cast: Serenay Sarikaya, Burak Deniz, Mustafa Ugurlu
- IMDb: 5.2
We are watching the story of Şahsu, who goes to Adana as an educator, and confronts his grandfather in the Netflix Turkey original series Şahmaran. Her encounter with a community called Mar, descended from Şahmaran, spoils all of the young woman’s plans. Şahsu, who met Maran on this journey, will actually make a thousand-year-old prophecy come true.
one of the ancient mythological stories of Anatolia. We talked about the Shahmaran legend and explained its role in culture. Since such mythological stories contain both countless facts and countless fictions, they form an integral part of the culture to which they belong.